Impossible As It Seems
by The Genius Mage
Summary: Canon AU, love rectangle? When the new apprentice arrives to train under Master Eraqus, Aqua's world tips dangerously as she battles her feelings to find the boy that would be right for her. She had never been the romantic type...VanitasxAquaxTerraxVen.
1. The Black Apprentice

_~*Impossible As It Seems*~_

_Sometimes the unbelievable can come true._

~***~

**Prologue: The Black Apprentice**

**WARNING:** Spoilers for Vanitas's face, unmasked. You have been warned.

The Land of Departure housed a good deal of the few Keybearers left in the universe. In its elegant gardens, raised mountains, and regal white castle suspended slightly in the air by long golden chains, a Master and his three apprentices made their home.

Well, soon it would be four apprentices. Then Eraqus would have his hands full trying to teach the only Keyblade Wielders left besides himself and a small handful of other Masters.

There used to be a lot more of the Chosen, those that were lucky enough to receive the Keyblade. Unfortunately, a fight over Kingdom Hearts—the heart of _all_ worlds and therefore almost unlimited power would be granted to whomever could harness the energy—resulted in a violent war that left behind legions of Keyblades…without their masters. It resulted in utter decimation for both sides.

All Aqua knew, lounging in one of the castle gardens on her back and watching the clouds pass by since Eraqus was too busy to teach them today, was that the new disciple and their soon-to-be colleague had been the apprentice of Master Xehanort, an old acquaintance of Eraqus's. The two had been taught by the same master, and had been students together. Xehanort had perished in the Keyblade War, and his student had been thought dead also.

However, a recent, very thorough search through all of the bodies and debris—Eraqus had purposely kept his trainees away from the war and therefore they had been in no danger—had uncovered the unconscious but very much alive Vanitas.

The volunteers from various worlds that had begun burying the dead took the darkly clad apprentice to Master Eraqus, and out of both pity for the boy and respect to Xehanort's memory, he had decided to finish his training.

They had yet to meet him. This was all Aqua, Terra, and Ventus knew. The boy had been recovering in one of the spare rooms of the Castle, and no one was allowed to see him. Now, he was well enough to meet them, and Eraqus had instructed his pupils to wait outside.

Terra, tall, broad shouldered, brown haired, sun-bronzed skin, folded his arms behind his head and lounged nearby the lone female apprentice, peeking at her when he thought she wasn't watching. Strong, occasionally short tempered, normally feigning a constant façade of seriousness. That was him.

Ventus, or Ven as he liked to be called, was the youngest. Spiky swept up blonde hair, bright blue eyes, fair skinned; he usually was either talking excitedly or withdrawing in on himself in a strange, melancholy mood. Thoughtful.

Aqua was, as she sometimes joked, the responsible one. Short blue hair, glassy azure eyes, a thin but athletic build like Ven's, frequently in a meditative mood. She was both serious and playful, depending on the situation. Unlike Terra and Ven, her strength laid in magic more than anything else.

"So," Terra spoke at last, shattering the fragile silence. He pushed himself up onto his hands, supporting his weight. The grass left green stains on his tan and dark blue outfit. "What's the first impression you guys have of this 'Vanitas'? You know about Xehanort, right?"

Aqua knew. She assumed a thoughtful position, chin in hand, drumming her fingers against her cheek. "_Master_ Xehanort used Darkness, didn't he?"

"They say it was his downfall," Ven waved his fingers ominously before grinning.

"But does his apprentice use it too?" Aqua asked carefully. "You guys know Master Eraqus is a devout believer of the Light, right?"

"His opinion must have clashed with Xehanort's," Terra pointed out. "But maybe he's hoping to straighten this guy out."

"Is Darkness all bad?" Ven inquired curiously.

"I'd say." Aqua shrugged. "But I don't know."

The warm sun and cool breeze was making the girl feel sluggish. She wanted to get up and do something, anything, to relieve the boredom.

Luckily, she didn't have to.

"All three of you. Come here," Eraqus commanded, though not unkindly. The apprentices turned to see their Master standing a short distance away, back on the path that curved to the Castle. He had his hand on a boy's shoulder that was about Ven's age.

Aqua got up and moved closer to investigate, Terra behind her, and Ven ahead. The blonde drew to a stop and stared curiously at Vanitas. The girl did the same, and her skin crawled.

He had a muscular build, like Terra, that showed a strength that belied his small frame. His outfit was made out of black and red crisscrossing bands; the suit covered his entire body and seemed eerily organic, like an outer skin instead of clothing. He had a young, pale face with an uncontrolled shock of wild black hair framing slightly slanted eyes and a thin mouth.

Most astonishing of all, though were the eyes themselves.

Brilliant. Bright. Vividly colored.

A light shade of glowing yellow.

Aqua hung back even when her friends stepped forward. Something was nagging her. She had an acute sensitivity to magic since it was the object she had chosen at her Awakening, and she could _feel_ the cold tendrils trailing through the air. Darkness.

If Eraqus noticed her hesitation, he did not address it. "Terra, Aqua, Ventus. This is Vanitas. Vanitas, these are my current apprentices and your new allies. I trust you will all get along well."

Ven didn't show a trace of wariness as he stepped forward and offered the boy his hand. "Hey there," he greeted cheerfully. "My name's Ven. Pleasure to meet ya, Vanitas! Can I call you Van?"

The handshake was returned, his black fingers coiling around the blonde's like a vice. "I'd rather you didn't," he spoke for the first time.

Aqua's first reaction to his voice was something like fear. It was a male's all right, sure, with the right masculine edges and qualities you would expect. What she _hadn't_ anticipated was the odd timbre that infused his tone, almost like an accent, but different. It sounded sinister, or just one step away from it. Distorted, even.

Ven frowned briefly when his hand was released, flexing the digits. "Quite a grip you've got there," he muttered, rubbing at his fingers.

Terra exchanged a short glance with Aqua before traversing the small distance between himself and the black apprentice. "My name's Terra," he offered politely.

Vanitas completed the handshake, and if his grip was as vicious with Terra as it was with Ven, it didn't faze the brown headed warrior. "Nice to meet you," the dark male said evenly.

Noticing now that Aqua didn't speak to Vanitas, Eraqus cleared his throat in warning.

She shook herself guiltily out of her trance, reluctantly raising her hand but giving the boy an honest smile nonetheless. "I'm Aqua, Vanitas."

He nodded, and when his cold fingers curved around hers, she snatched her hand back in shock. She resisted the urge to moan or scream aloud; instead she bunched her digits into a fist and let out an abrupt gasp.

"What did you do?" Terra snarled suddenly, stepping between Vanitas and Aqua, drawing his Keyblade in the same motion.

Ven put his hands up. "Whoa, calm down, Terra!"

"I did nothing!" Vanitas protested, something in his tone decreed the truth in his words.

Aqua let the pain fade before lifting her palm, looking at the new black lines that scoured her hand. Vanitas's grip was imprinted on her skin, and though the agony of it had gone, she could almost feel its echo, like an ethereal heartbeat.

"Vanitas," Eraqus began slowly. "You did not intend that?"

"No," was the flat reply.

Terra still growled slightly and settled near Aqua, rocking a little on his heels, ready for action.

"We may need to talk. Come." Eraqus turned and led Vanitas away, and the girl raised her eyes in time to meet Vanitas's golden gaze.

She expected a wicked grin or something, but all she got was an apologetic stare that showed the boy thought his first meeting with the three apprentices had gone wrong, wrong, wrong.

~***~

**_Oh dear God. Don't hurt me. I know this is the crackiest idea ever--if it is, I win bonus points! I live for crack. Apparenty, so does my friend._**

This story is dedicated to Dani-Chan-Sprite-Monster -13-._** If you haven't noticed already, this is a Partial Alternate Universe. AU Canon you could say. I'm using canon concepts from the Kingdom Hearts universe--the Keyblade, Darkness, Light, etc--with completely made up stuff. i.e., Vanitas as a "good guy". A massive What If that defies Kingdom Hearts laws.**_

**_Stupid idea? Then I'm still pleased._**

EDIT**_...this story has been changed from a love triangle to a love rectangle. The world's first VanitasxAquaxTerraxVentus Love Rectangle. Bring it on._**

**_Whomever Aqua ends up with depends on you as the reviewer and Dani. =P So review._**

**_Omni-Disclaimer time. I don't own Kingdom Hearts. If I did, Xion would still be here._**


	2. Starting Over

**Chapter One: Starting Over**

Aqua still didn't know what to think about Vanitas. So she didn't think about him at all. She pushed the dark apprentice to the farthest reaches of her mind and concentrated on her training. Granted, it was hard to do that, what with Vanitas now training with her, Terra, and Ven. He was every bit as far in his own education as they were, though some of his methods were…unconventional.

He apparently couldn't control his Darkness well, and he ended up knocking Ventus off his feet with a howling black gust that sent the blonde disciple tumbling across the ground. Aqua had been about to address the issue but Terra jumped in and started yelling at Vanitas again, and she felt guilty, since she didn't stop him.

Eraqus had sighed and covered his face with one hand.

Ven had insisted it was nothing, getting easily to his feet. He, alone, was the only person that wasn't hostile towards Vanitas besides their Master. Aqua was a bit envious to him for that. He held no grudges.

Terra was acting like her bodyguard, to her annoyance, even though Vanitas couldn't try to talk to her anyway since she avoided his attempts every time he tried. She promised herself to speak with him later, but the days became weeks and after a month, she had scarcely said a sentence to Vanitas besides what was necessary.

Aqua rubbed at her hand, which still throbbed in accordance to the distance between herself and the boy, or so her imagination claimed. She found herself wondering if he had done it on purpose.

"He's nothing but trouble," Terra growled to her one day, eyeing Vanitas across the field from them, talking with Ven halfheartedly.

Aqua opened her mouth to protest, but closed it again, unsure of what to say.

She had only just started her magic exercises when Eraqus pulled her to the side, shaking his graying head slowly.

"I'm speaking with Terra about this soon, but this has reached a _ridiculous_ level. I will accept no more of this." He glowered thunderously at her, his eyes resembling dark storm clouds. "I'm putting you on the hiking trail with Vanitas, and you _will_ stop ignoring him. You will cease this childish nonsense."

Aqua felt resentment and guilt brewing inside of her. He was right, in a way.

Eraqus sighed, his expression softening. "I expected a little more maturity from you."

The disappointment in his tone hurt her more than any angry rant about her attitude. She bowed her head quickly. "Yes, Master. You're absolutely right."

He nodded curtly. "You know the trail?"

She did. There was a winding path that started at the base of the castle and twisted around a mountain peak before heading back down. It was about ten, fifteen miles, maybe more, of rough walking. It was part of the endurance course, though she had never exactly went down it before. Terra had, at one point.

"Don't stray from the road, and you will be fine. I don't want to have to rescue two of my apprentices from the wilderness." Her Master smiled, and Aqua tentatively returned the gesture. "Good." Looking satisfied, he gestured to Vanitas, sitting near the low stone wall as he watched Ven and Terra spar.

Needing no more encouragement, Aqua hesitantly walked towards him. She reminded herself that yes, she was being stupid, and now she had an apology to issue. "Vanitas?"

He looked stunned that she was even talking to him. He lifted his head, unreadable yellow eyes set on her face. "Yes?" he questioned guardedly.

"The Master wants us to go walking. On that endurance trail. Over there." Aqua pointed to the aforementioned mountain path, and his gaze flicked to follow the direction she had depicted before moving back to her, slowly.

"Alright." Standing, the black clad boy set off for the beginning of the road without waiting for the girl to follow. Aqua headed after him, and to her surprise, Terra paused in his training with Ven, watching them.

"Where're you headed?" He called.

"Hiking, back in a bit." Aqua responded with a shrug.

Meanwhile, Ven had put too much momentum into his swing and, unable to stop in time, he knocked Terra off his feet with the side of his Keyblade. The boy proceeded to stumble and collapse on the ground in an undignified heap. "I planned that," he said in defense to Aqua's giggle.

"Of course you did, Ven." Whilst she had been talking, Vanitas had kept walking further away. She scrambled to catch up, fighting back her unease, her eyes traveling to the black marks on her hand.

The path began at the base of the Castle. The ground started to steadily slope upward, but the way they were supposed to go was clear. A brown dirt trail, smooth as you please, easily discernible through the foliage that crowded near the edges, snaked past the rocks and hunched hills.

Aqua walked beside Vanitas, eyes lowered, trying to get her mouth and voice to work in coordination so she could speak to him. Apologize. Now that Eraqus had brought it to her attention, she really _had_ been acting stupid for so _long_ when it had clearly been an accident. It wasn't like he had taken her entire hand off; he had just left a mark that had hurt for a mere second.

_A rather painful second_, she thought with pursed lips.

She turned her head, brushing a strand of blue hair back, eyeing Vanitas from the corner of her vision. He was staring at the sky, black hair still as untidy as ever, those horrible burning gold eyes flaring brighter in the sun's light. Aqua felt a blush creep up as he suddenly turned his head and stared at her. The corner of his mouth twitched, the only hint of a smile.

"Can I help you?" he inquired.

Aqua took a deep breath. "I'm sorry."

His eyes narrowed. "Really?" Skeptical.

She forced herself to return his level stare. "I am _sorry_. So much. I was acting stupid and childish for ignoring you for so long. I mean it. And now, Vanitas, I want to start over." Aqua smiled, a hesitant one but true-blue all the same. "My name is Aqua," she teased gently.

Vanitas's strange gaze flickered down to her offered hand—the unmarked one—and back to her face with his usual animal-like wariness. Suddenly, his fingers closed around her other hand and he yanked her slightly so that she was a few steps closer.

Aqua's heart jumped in her chest and she resisted the urge to call her Keyblade. _Trust him_, she reminded herself. But then again, they were alone on a mountain trail…

He waited until she looked him in the eyes. "Apology accepted," Vanitas said with a cat's smile. He closed both of his hands over hers and his lids slipped closed. Aqua shivered as a cold energy licked her skin, but then the boy let go and grinned wider. "There," he breathed.

Aqua gasped, seeing the unblemished, clear skin of her hand. The black marks were gone. "How did you…?"

"I wanted to try that earlier," admitted Vanitas slowly. "But you never let me."

She narrowed her eyes. "Why did you…hurt me to begin with?"

"I didn't mean to," he snapped. "Everyone here is _light, light, light_. Even Terra, though he's not as bright as you or Ven or the Master. All of this energy is foreign to me. Your scents are all twisted and—"

"_Scents_?" Aqua forced herself to keep walking and after a moment, Vanitas followed suit.

"Darkness has an array of senses," he replied reluctantly. "That's what Master Xehanort always told me. Scent is one of them."

They paused in their conversation to pick their way across a small mountain stream, leaping from stepping stone to stepping stone. The view was becoming quite impressive. To their right, the mountain dropped down to the assorted valleys and lush forests that littered the landscape, looking like a mass of green and brown paint.

Aqua blinked, recalling that she and Terra had first actually started bonding as friends down there in the wilderness during one of their training sessions. They had gotten off to a bit of a rocky start at first. Vanitas's voice snapped her out of her thoughtful reverie.

"Bad, isn't it?"

"What?" She turned to look at him, lifting a low hanging tree branch out of the way and ducking under it.

"The Darkness. Eraqus wants me to drop it but I don't think I can." His tone was vaguely bitter.

Aqua opened her mouth and closed it again. "I bet you could. The Light doesn't give up on anyone as long as _you_ don't give up on_ it_."

"The Light." Vanitas curled his lip, his voice emotionless.

Aqua sighed. "Well, what did your old Master teach you?" She was a little troubled by his earlier statement, that Terra's Light wasn't as strong as the others, not as bright. Why would that be?

"Darkness was supreme and in order to obtain it, I had to give up."

She covered her mouth in surprise. It was the opposite of what Eraqus taught. "…Did you give up?"

"Kind of. I don't want to talk about it." Vanitas rubbed at his hair, and his uneasiness made him look strangely younger.

"What did you think of your old Master?" Aqua asked quietly after a few seconds.

He laughed, and it was such an unexpected, sharp sound that goose-bumps rose on her skin.

"He certainly knew what he was talking about, but I don't really miss him. Not like you would miss Eraqus if he died."

Aqua hummed to that in response, saying nothing. They continued to talk as they traversed the mountain trail, and though it was still a little awkward, it was taking a step towards something almost casual.

~***~

"Finally, you're back." Terra greeted Aqua as she and Vanitas headed towards them. "The sun's setting. You all right?"

"Fine," Aqua shrugged. Vanitas just grunted.

"Let's go get you something to eat then, you're probably starving." Terra suggested.

"Where's Ven?" Vanitas interrupted.

The brunette glared at him as if he didn't really want to answer. "Ven's off on some kind of errand." He said at last.

"Oh." His yellow eyes flicked to the side.

"Here, come eat with us," Aqua invited out of the blue.

Terra looked startled but to her surprise he just shrugged. "Yeah, c'mon _Van_."

Vanitas growled but didn't say anything. They pushed open the Castle's lavishly decorated gold and white doors, walking down the corridors and climbing the steps. Before they had even gone halfway up the first set of stairs, Terra asked, "How was the nature trail?"

"Fine, I guess." Aqua suddenly remembered what she had wanted to say to Terra. "Apologize," she scolded, eyes narrowing.

Terra's face went slack with shock. "Huh?"

"Apologize. To Vanitas." She placed her hands on her hips. "He healed my hand, see? And _I_ already said sorry."

"Sorry for _what_?" His tone turned icy.

"For ignoring him, obviously."

For several long seconds, Aqua and Terra just glared at one another. Dark, glassy cobalt and deep azure blue eyes fighting for dominance. Vanitas took a hasty step back to get out of their line of sight.

Terra grounded his teeth and said so quietly that she barely heard, "Only because it's you." Raising his voice he said in a tensely civil tone, "I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings, Vanitas."

"Apology accepted." The yellow eyed boy flashed a smug smile that made Terra clench his fists.

Aqua unexpectedly yelped and grabbed both of their shoulders, pulling them back. "Watch out!"

A flash of gold and sky blue eyes passed them as none other than Ventus came sliding down the banister, trying to control his descent, his voice caught at an octave between cheering and screaming, as if he was terrified and amused at once.

_Crash-thump-clang!_

"Ven!" Aqua raced down the stairs with the two boys behind her. "Are you okay?" She asked anxiously.

The blonde had crashed into a white vase that had miraculously remained intact. He lifted one hand and maneuvered the fingers into a thumbs up without rising from his sprawled position on the white tiles. "Fine."

"When will you stop trying to kill yourself?" Vanitas remarked with an air of indifference, but he was smiling.

Terra helped Ven to his feet and the utterly unperturbed apprentice brushed his clothes off. "You know," the eldest of the pupils commented. "Didn't Eraqus tell you before that you should use the stairs?"

"I wanted to catch you guys before you got back, but looks like Aqua and Van are already here." His grin widened and Aqua laughed. She always liked how cheerily casual he was, as if it was normal to go crashing into walls. Maybe it was, for him. His clumsiness was something he'd probably outgrow, but it was endearing, in a way. "What's up?" Ven folded his arms behind his head.

"We _were_ going to get something to eat, then some rest. Eraqus has us doing combat training tomorrow, and you know how _those_ always end up." Terra said, heading back up the stairs with everyone else trailing after.

"With you and Van trying to kill one another?" Ventus hazarded a guess.

Vanitas grimaced at his impromptu nickname. "Of course, then we have to see Aqua getting frustrated as Terra continuously holds back on her."

"Everyone holds back on me," Ven complained. "Even if I try as hard as I can, I don't know if I'm winning or if you're letting me."

"I don't hold back," Terra disagreed, deliberately not addressing his reluctance to spar with Aqua.

"You do too." The blue haired girl sighed, tuning out their conversation as she settled into a deep train of thought. Eraqus would be pleased now, at the very least. She had gotten Terra to apologize to Vanitas, she had finally gotten over her—fear?—of addressing the black apprentice, and now they were all together as at least acquaintances as they should be.

It was made simpler by the fact that Ven had acted with sense before hand, being Vanitas's only friend. He was the lone one with sense sometimes, or at least more than _Terra_. She didn't get him sometimes.

Even when they reached the kitchen, Aqua didn't cook anything. She instead searched the deepest recesses of her mind. There was a story, on the tip of her tongue, about…a fruit…that held people's destinies together so that they would always meet again.

Aqua perked up as the name of the fruit and the world it was from finally made itself known. She bolted out of the kitchen, heading for the library, before anyone could even call her name.

~***~

**_Lots of Vanitas and Aqua stuff this chapter. No worries, only the first chapter after all, and everyone needed to get on civil terms first. I owe someone named idiotique a special thanks for helping me understand how to write love stories. I apologize for the long gap in updates, but I have a lot of other things I work on._**

_**Speaking of which. This is important. This may end up just being as I intended, TerraxAquaxVanitas, since I agree with some authors that have told me that a rectangle is far too much drama. I never intended for Ven to be left out of the story though, since he was always supposed to be in here, so we'll see where this goes, but keep this in mind. If I get hit with the right idea, Ven may come in like some people have asked.**_

**_There will be some fight scenes and possibly even world traveling later on. Who knows?_**

_**Reviews are love~**_


	3. A Charm of Good Fortune

**Chapter Two: A Charm of Good Fortune**

Sure, she had been up all night and would probably regret it later after the hours stretched on, but right now, her excitement was keeping her wide awake. Aqua waited with a happy smile for everyone to gather near her as they sat outside in the Castle Gardens, Terra leaning against a flower box, Ven sitting down cross-legged, and Vanitas, standing with his arms crossed.

Aqua said, "There's a world out there called Destiny Islands. There's a star shaped fruit, a paopu, that is said to be able to intertwine the destinies of whoever decides to use it. So…though I can't go to Destiny Islands, I _did_ use some magic of my own to create…these!"

She held up four star shaped charms she had fastened by hand, their surfaces carrying a metallic gleam. In the center was a small crown, and the edges of the trinket were decorated with calligraphic white swirls. Their silver chains gleamed in the morning sun's light. One was blue, one red, one green, and the other yellow. "I figured, since we're friends now…"

"Awesome!" Ven leaped to his feet and grinned. "Which one's mine?"

Aqua laughed and handed him the emerald star, Terra the crimson, and Vanitas the gold. The other two boys looked too surprised to say anything.

"There, now we can be with one another, no matter what." Thoroughly pleased with herself, the blue haired girl flashed her compatriots a joyful grin. Terra exchanged a brief, unreadable look with Vanitas before clearing his throat.

"That's a good idea. Thank you, Aqua."

Vanitas dipped his head. "Yes, thank you."

"These are great! Thanks a lot, Aqua!" Ven exclaimed, bringing his trinket close to his face for a better inspection.

"No problem. You're welcome."

"Terra, Aqua, Ventus, Vanitas! Come here!"

Turning, Aqua spotted Master Eraqus standing in the doorway of the Castle. Her beloved mentor had his usual stern expression on, quick eyes darting from one apprentice to the other. The group of pupils hurried to stand in front of him, standing straight with their hands at their sides.

"Would you rather train inside, or outside today?" Eraqus said after a few moments.

The compatriots looked at one another.

"It'll be hotter outside," Vanitas complained.

"But outside you have more room, and if you fall, you'll just land in the grass," Ven countered.

"_You're_ not the one in armor."

"Why _do_ you have that weird suit on all the time, Van?"

The black apprentice blinked, as if it had never occurred to him, and Aqua found herself wondering the same thing. Terra just crossed his arms and waited for an answer.

"…Why do you have _your_ outfit on all the time? Same reason," Vanitas deadpanned.

There was a polite cough from Master Eraqus, and Terra hurriedly said, "Outside."

"Is that acceptable?"

There was a chorus of "Yes, Master."

"Good. This way, then." As Eraqus turned and began walking down the winding garden paths, the disciples trailed behind, murmuring to themselves.

"Watch the Master pin me with Terra. I'm going to lose an arm," Ventus groaned.

Aqua brushed her hair from her eyes. "At least he's _trying_."

"I hope he pairs me with Vanitas," Terra growled, casting a meaningful glance behind him.

The dark-haired boy glowered, yellow eyes flashing over his unnaturally sharp teeth. "Go ahead and feel as you want," he smirked. "It's not helping your cause."

Terra stopped and stared at him. "What?"

Vanitas chuckled, his sneer intensifying. "We're not so different, you and I."

Exchanging a startled look with Ven, Aqua said, "C'mon, the Master is waiting."

"We're _nothing_ alike!" roared the eldest protégé, completely ignoring his friends.

"Temper, _temper_." Vanitas warned smoothly.

"All of you get over here!" Eraqus's voice demanded from the other side of the courtyard.

They quickly complied, racing one another to their teacher. Aqua frowned, worrying about the thick tension between Vanitas and Terra. She hoped it was something that the pair could straighten out. Ven was ruffling his golden spines and frowning, flicking his gaze between the troublesome duo.

Their Master drew himself up to his full height, studying them with an unreadable expression. Finally, after ten minutes of intense staring that made everyone except Vanitas shuffle uncomfortably, he sighed and closed his eyes.

"Today we are doing combat practice, as you know," he said without lifting his lids. "You will _all_ be fighting one another, in a cycle. At the very end of this exercise, you will all fight simultaneously. This day will be rigorous, and I hope you're well rested."

Aqua tried not to dwell on the little amount of sleep she had had last night, the lucky charm feeling oddly heavy in her pocket.

"You will combat one another in pairs first. Is that understood?" Eraqus inquired calmly, finally gazing at his apprentices, one after another. His eyes lingered on Vanitas for a few seconds longer than anyone else, and Aqua frowned slightly at the shadow that passed over his face.

_It's almost like…I don't know. Does the Master not like Vanitas?_

But that wasn't possible. Eraqus was the one that insisted on everyone treating the black apprentice fairly. However, she was so _sure_ that his features had become slightly fearful. Hostile, even. She clenched her fists.

_Vanitas isn't dangerous. He apologized to me, and even if he _is_ a little alien, he's making an effort to become…normal. But what _is_ normal anyway?_

Aqua snuck a glance at the object of her thoughts. His golden eyes, fanged smile, peculiar costume…

_"He certainly knew what he was talking about, but I don't really miss him. Not like you would miss Eraqus if he died."_

She couldn't help but wonder then…What had his old Master, Xehanort, done to him? What could he have possibly done to make his apprentice so foreign to others training for the same thing? What could he have done to make his pupil not miss him at all?

She vowed to ask Vanitas as soon as she could. Therein might lay the answer to everything.

"Aqua? Did you hear me?"

Starting guiltily, she dipped her head in response. "I'm sorry, Master Eraqus. What did you say?"

"You will be sparring with Vanitas for this round, then Ventus, then Terra," he repeated evenly. "Please put some space between you and the others."

"Yes, Master." Aqua followed Vanitas to the opposite side of the wide green field. Eraqus had used some form of magic to lift the stone flowerboxes away from them, and they had plenty of room. Sunlight streamed down from the heavens and warmed her shoulders and back. Facing her temporary opponent, the girl stretched her arms over her head, hearing the joints crack.

Despite herself, she yawned.

_Sometimes the weather can really be a disadvantage,_ she sighed. If it was cold, she'd probably not be drowsy. The Land of Departure's constant summer temperatures could often induce a lethargic state.

It wasn't the first time she had fought Vanitas, technically, but before they had only been practicing moves. For example, he'd attack her and she'd let him try a disarming maneuver, or she'd stand still and allow him to knock her legs out from under her.

But yes, this would be new. They were actually going to try and batter the other into submission without inducing fatal injuries, since Keybearers shouldn't have to kill anyone to obtain a victory. She knew for a fact that he had a taboo arsenal of Darkness at his disposal, and he always got viciously reprimanded by Eraqus for using it.

But he did anyway. He would explain in a somewhat frustrated fashion that he knew no other style of fighting. And it was difficult to unlearn an entire style.

Vanitas stared her down, yellow eyes narrowing to slits. He arched his arm over his head in his usual stance, his twisted Keyblade springing to its owner's hand. The blue orb on its hilt made her skin crawl; because she always had the feeling it was watching her.

Aqua summoned Rain Fall and readied herself. Eraqus was between the two groups of apprentices, standing near the edges. She sensed him watching her.

"Begin," their Master ordered, arms crossed.

The first thing Aqua heard was a wild snarl from Terra as he lunged towards Ven, and after that there was a quick pattering of feet as the youngest Keyblader dodged, or so she guessed, because there was no pained cry in response to the attack.

But she forced herself to ignore them, tensing her lean frame in anticipation.

Vanitas did nothing for a second, his body quivering as if he was fighting something already and getting hurt by it. Then he shook himself and ran straight at her.

Aqua cartwheeled to the side, then crouched and sprang back up, spinning once and catching his shoulder. Vanitas whipped around and unexpectedly grabbed one of her sleeves, tugging hard. She stumbled in surprise, since Ven and Terra had never used her own garments against her.

His Keyblade bit into her skin, and she winced, all of the air leaving her lungs in a whoosh. It…hurt more than anyone else's, and she found that unusual. The cold touch of Darkness lingered for an instant before dissipating.

Quickly, Aqua pointed Rain Fall at Vanitas and loosed seven strings of rainbow light; their iridescent radiance turned everything around it bright. He deflected three of them but took the rest to his chest, and he groaned, clutching the front of his suit with one hand.

She performed a rapid attack sequence then, slicing his injured shoulder and his torso in three swift movements. Vanitas drew his fist back and launched a shadow ball at her, its icy presence stealing the heat from the air.

Aqua lifted her Keyblade to block it, and at that instant he dropped to the ground and spun, tripping her. She fell instantly on her back, and Vanitas spun his weapon, smirking evilly, and aimed for her heart.

She saw his yellow eyes suddenly flinch, as if he had just remembered something. His Keyblade instead altered its course and sank deep into her right arm, her Keyblade wielding arm. She felt the muscles go limp, and that frightened her.

As pain ripped across her system, Aqua prayed he hadn't severed a nerve. Adrenaline produced from her fear bolstered her magic, and she slammed a column of pure Light into his chest, its insides flickering with white fire.

He screamed at the same time she did as the Darkness twisted the muscles in her arm, causing it to clench and spasm, irritating the already damaged tissue to an extreme point. Aqua tried a technique for relaxing the mind and body, for she definitely wasn't making it any better by tensing her arm as she was.

Vanitas was yelling something that sounded like a dozen swear words, and she distantly registered Eraqus's, Terra's, and Ven's startled shouts.

She placed her uninjured hand on her arm and forced out through her teeth, "Cure."

The green energy sank into Aqua's body, and as the pain faded, she became aware of the agony she was placing Vanitas in. She forced herself to her feet and limped to his side.

In her panic and agony, she had hit him with a Light-based spell. The Light had fused with a Firaga—or Fire; she wasn't sure which—and had ignited his suit. His Darkness was flickering uselessly around his form as he thrashed in torment, attempting to douse the flames.

Aqua placed her hands directly over his heart, gasping out the counterspell that would dispel the embers.

The ivory inferno flashed briefly then disappeared, and Vanitas opened his eyes, staring up at her. Terra was suddenly there, grabbing her arm and running his fingers across the bloodied surface.

"Are you okay?" He demanded. "What did he do?"

She ignored him. "Vanitas?" She tentatively asked.

The black-haired apprentice sat up as Eraqus and Ven knelt at his side. "Wha…? What did you do?" His voice turned harsh.

"I'm so sorry, Vanitas," Aqua apologized.

He stared at her, then sighed and ruffled his hair. "No, I am…"

Eraqus sighed and started checking Vanitas for any serious injuries. The black apprentice was seared all over, for the Light Firaga had burned into his skin, bypassing his suit as if it hadn't been there. Aqua's Cure spell had stopped the blood on her arm from flowing but hadn't fixed the internal damage, so her Master had to mend that too.

Before Eraqus said the inevitable, Aqua declared swiftly, "I want to continue training. I feel fine now." She did…or, well enough anyway. If anything, her Master was very good at healing.

He raised his eyebrows. "Are you sure?"

"Positively."

"Vanitas?"

"Let's keep going." Vanitas averted his gaze from anyone else's, and Aqua sighed.

_Why did I do that? I completely lost it. That must have been horrible for him!_

Ven coughed to break the silence. "Um, let's get going then, Aqua!"

She strove to ignore the dull throbbing in her right arm, nodding wordlessly at him. That meant Vanitas and Terra would be fighting. Lovely. They _always_ got carried away.

Eraqus frowned, unhappy with his apprentices but not willing to send them away. He insisted that they not overdo it and they should stop if they felt even a little tired. Then he added that Terra and Vanitas should refrain from getting "too enthusiastic" unless they wanted to clean the Castle from top to bottom.

"Yes, Master," was the prompt reply from everyone.

As Aqua locked gazes with Ven, her new adversary, he just gave her a worried grin, blue eyes shining with apprehension.

"I'm fine. I won't faint on the spot," she assured him somewhat dryly.

"Sure, sure." He didn't sound very convinced.

"Begin."

Ven was suddenly gone, and Aqua had to back-flip to avoid his unexpected lunge from behind. He was the fastest of all the apprentices, and he knew it too. She had always respected his odd battle stance—his backhanded Keyblade hold came with a completely new attack method, after all.

Aqua struck out with a Blizzard spell, coating the green grass with frost. Ven slipped for a second, and that was all she needed. A barrage of attacks fell on his shoulder and side, but she was careful to keep her blows soft, since she wasn't intending on hurting him like she had accidentally harmed Vanitas.

Grinning from ear to ear since he was pleased that she wasn't holding back, the blonde twirled his weapon and called, "Aero!"

Whipping winds tossed dirt and other small plants into her eyes, and Aqua blinked rapidly, momentarily blinded. He delivered a strike to her chest before following with two more speedy arcs. Then he sprang away and waited for her to recover.

Shaking her head, Aqua thought of something that was faster than even Ventus. "Thunder!"

A magical bolt of yellow lightning crackled and popped into existence, hitting him square on the head. He stumbled, his blonde hair smoking briefly, and Aqua tackled him to the ground. The pair tumbled head over heels for a few heartbeats before she pinned him under her.

"Got you," she gasped. She wouldn't have tried this with Terra; he was strong enough to flip their positions. She wasn't sure how physically adept Vanitas was.

Ven wriggled for a second then he sighed. "Okay, you win."

Aqua was doubtful, though. "Are you_ letting_ me win or something?"

He glanced from side to side in a rather secretive fashion. "I'm trying to conserve energy before I have to fight Vanitas! Terra was bad enough. Just say you won."

Despite herself, she laughed at her friend, and Aqua let him up. They both directed their attention to Terra and Vanitas as the pair of rivals fought.

Vanitas was grappling with Terra, their Keyblades clashing together with a series of sharp metal clangs. Aqua watched as the eldest apprentice steadily gained ground as the black-haired boy retreated. Suddenly, Vanitas ducked under the next swipe and kicked Terra in the chest, sending him stumbling backwards.

A snarl ripped through Vanitas's throat and he pounced like a feral animal, Darkness waving around him in shadowy waves.

A ripple of Light flowed in-between Terra and his foe, but Aqua was confused by what happened next. Whilst Vanitas usually recoiled from her Light, he seemed unbothered by Terra's. The two collided in an undignified heap, scrabbling at one another with feet and fists, unable to use their weapons at such close quarters.

Eraqus muttered something that sounded like, "The Darkness and that boy are inseparable."

Startled, Aqua turned to him. "Master, what do you mean?"

He appeared surprised that she had heard him. "Aqua, don't trouble yourself over it. It's…something I think I'll need to sort out on my own." He frowned, stroking his chin with one scarred hand.

Ven crossed his arms, and Aqua recognized his thoughtful expression. "Van isn't bad, is he, Master?"

Eraqus didn't reply. "Terra, Vanitas, that's enough."

Terra pulled away reluctantly and Vanitas rolled to his feet, glaring yellow daggers at the brown-haired warrior.

"Assume your next positions," their Master instructed.

Aqua complied, turning to Terra as he lifted Earth Shaker and rested it on one broad shoulder. He flashed her a smile.

"No holding back," Aqua insisted, though she knew her pleading was pointless.

"I never do," Terra replied innocently.

Vanitas was muttering something in response to Ven, and she chanced a quick peek at him. Their eyes met for a few seconds before he turned away.

"Begin."

Aqua raised one hand and called a maelstrom of wind into life. The resulting dust cloud hit her from view as she snuck around swiftly and crashed her Keyblade down on Terra's back. He twisted, but he was slow compared to her, and she succeeded in landing several more blows.

She was forced to throw up a Reflect spell to bounce him away from her before his weapon collided. The transparent shapes glittered briefly as they flared, protecting her. Terra muttered a hasty Thunder that struck Aqua on her leg as she cartwheeled to the side.

Terra swung Earth Shaker and hit her in the chest. Aqua gasped and fell flat on her back and she hurriedly raised her arm to block his next attack. Instead of moving away, he pressed down on her, harder and harder until her muscles screamed in protest.

Unable to help it, Aqua gasped and squeezed her eyes shut against the pain. Her arm still throbbed and stung from where Vanitas had stabbed it.

Instantly, the pressure vanished. "Are you okay?"

Shakily, she got to her feet. "Okay, I'm okay."

His expression was disbelieving, and he held her steady as she leaned against him for support. "Really?"

"Yes."

Scoffing, Terra muttered quietly, "It's fine if you want to stop now."

Aqua tried to ignore the ache and how tired she was. Making those lucky charms had been a mistake—or at least the time she had made them had been a mistake. Not to mention that she was worn out from all of the rapid magic casting she had performed. She wasn't sure how much longer she could focus her energy.

There was a yelp as Ven tripped and sprawled on the ground at their feet. Aqua looked up and saw Vanitas charging him, teeth bared, Keyblade raised high. Before she or even Terra could react, Ven leaped up and jumped clear over Vanitas's head, grabbing his shoulder and spinning him around, so that he was off balance.

Aqua stared, open mouthed, as Ven's eyes narrowed and he delivered a blow so fast that she only saw a blur hit Vanitas's head. The black apprentice stumbled and fell onto his side, seeming to faint for a second before groggily standing once more.

"Okay, I give up," he rasped, breathing hard.

Eraqus raised his hands. "Enough."

Everyone turned to look at him as he strode over, his expression still and unreadable. Aqua wondered if he was thinking about the Darkness that he hated, and the fact that Vanitas wielded it so easily.

"Now…Terra, Aqua, Ventus, Vanitas…We'll postpone the four-way combat for another day. You all need to rest."

Aqua blinked, realizing that the sun was far lower in the sky than she had imagined it to be. The horizon was beginning to become a fine, delicate pink.

"Go to your rooms…and _rest_. I need to think about something." Eraqus lowered his head in a clear dismissal, eyes slipping closed.

As the friends bowed and chimed, "Yes, Master," they also retreated towards the grand white Castle.

Terra surprised Aqua by gently turning her to face him. "Are you okay?" His shadow-blue eyes were dark with worry.

"I'm fine. Why do you ask?" She lied. In reality, she was pretty tired. She imagined she could sleep for a moon cycle, if she could.

He opened his mouth, closed it, and then shrugged. He moved his gaze from hers, looking at the ground. "Just checking. I'm just a little concerned."

"I'm honored, but there's no need," Aqua assured him.

He nodded slowly. "I…I really…"

She noticed Ven and Vanitas were talking to one another, almost to the Castle. "What is it, Terra?"

He said abruptly, "Just be careful. I don't like it when you're hurt. Or hurting you. Or...someone else hurting…Let's go." Terra walked swiftly away, and left Aqua there, flummoxed.

_What was that about?_

She followed as fast as she could, and the group entered the Castle's grand ivory hallways. Aqua stepped to Vanitas's side and laid her hand on his shoulder. He shrugged her off. "Are you alright? I didn't mean to—"

"I'm fine. It's not the worst thing I've endured." His voice was hard and flat.

"…I…"

"Look, I'm okay. Stop feeling sorry for me. Did _I_ hurt_ you_?" Vanitas demanded more than asked, facing her with his arms crossed.

Aqua heard Terra's footsteps pause, and after a second, Ven's too.

"It's nothing that won't heal."

"Everything heals over time except scars."

His reply confused her momentarily. "What do you mean?"

The dying sunlight hit Vanitas's yellow eyes and turned them fiery. "Scars never heal. You might be okay with it now, but the scars will be there forever."

There was something about his tone and wording that made Aqua think he was implying something else. She tilted her head to the side, trying to puzzle out his statement.

"Someone can remove the scar," Ven suggested suddenly.

"Or at least remove the guy that _caused_ the scar," Terra scowled at Vanitas.

Aqua sighed and stepped between the pair of feuding apprentices, following Ventus upstairs. The blonde gave her a sympathetic look. "You don't have to try and play peacemaker."

"If I don't, who will?"

"I will, if you want."

She laughed and patted his arm. "You're too nice sometimes, Ven. I appreciate it though."

His smile made her grin in return. "It's no problem. Come on, let's get something to eat, and then hit the hay. I think I could sleep for a month!"

Aqua nodded somewhat ruefully. "My thoughts exactly."

As she went with the young apprentice, she let herself forget about the problems that Terra and Vanitas generated between them. At least Ventus always had his sense intact, and she was glad for his companionship at that moment more than any other.

Getting her to smile was never a problem with him, after all, and she spent most of her time scowling in annoyance lately between the pair of antagonistic disciples.

It was a nice change.

~***~

**_First of all, I've adjusted my update schedule to include this story now. It'll mean one of my others has to wait, but that's acceptable, considering the circumstances._**

**_This chapter was written with a few things in mind, one of them showing the possibility of Ven being with Aqua. However, I and one other pesrson already know who the "winner" of this will be._**

**_And of course, that person is Dani-Chan! For you, as always._**

**_You can thank the fantastic UnVeRsEd for convincing me that I might be able to pull off a love rectangle._**


	4. The Blue Rose

**Chapter Three: The Blue Rose**

Aqua woke up with a massive yawn, stretching her arms high above her head. She blinked the sleep from her eyes and brushed her hair behind her ears, and the first thing she noticed was the object at her bedside.

Standing on the desk near her was a white vase that had never been there before, and within it was a beautiful, thorn-less blue rose. Its soft scent wreathed the room with a delicate fragrance.

Shocked, she touched it with the tips of her fingers.

_Who would have done this for me?_

Before she could contemplate more on the gorgeous item that had somehow miraculously materialized in her room, a fist banged on her door.

"Aqua," Ven's voice called from the other side. "Master wants us for a magic exercise in the Training Chamber in thirty minutes."

"Alright, I'll be there soon."

She waited until the scuffle of his metal steps faded from hearing, and then got out of bed. The blue-haired maiden sighed, still curiously eyeing the vase and its mysterious inhabitant,_ just_ picking up the faint prickle of magic from its azure petals.

As Aqua ducked into her bathroom to change and perform various morning rituals, she couldn't help but think that Ven was surprisingly awake. More than even _she_ was. He wasn't a morning person by nature.

Slipping into her shirt, the girl shrugged, dismissing it. There had been a few other times when he had been excited in the early hours of the day; maybe they were doing something in magic practice that really interested him.

An electrifying tingle shot down the length of her spine as she dragged a comb through her hair, gazing at her reflection. Aqua loved combat as much as the next apprentice—unless that apprentice was Terra—but she truly excelled in the arcane arts, and she never tired of learning different spells and enchantments. She thought physical exertion would only get one so far, the use of magic was _limitless_.

And if Ven was eager over starting the session today, it must be an interesting lesson indeed.

Aqua started putting her gauntleted shoes on, her mind straying from one subject to the next with a lazy interest. It was odd for them to be skipping breakfast for practice; therefore Eraqus probably just remembered something he really wanted to show them. They'd probably stop the lesson halfway through to…

A sliver of unease inserted itself into her heart then, jabbing and twisting and dragging at her thoughts until she acknowledged it.

_Vanitas. And Terra._

A scowl found its way onto her face. Her two dear, feuding friends. The dark apprentice and the earth warrior never had exactly gotten along swimmingly, and if yesterday's theatrics were anything to go by, it wasn't going to get any better.

With ten minutes to spare, Aqua exited her room and started down the golden steps, only to have to take a different flight of stairs to reach the Training Chamber. Whilst scaling the ascending corridor, she spotted Terra up ahead, and at the sound of her approach, he paused.

The brown-haired protégé glanced over his shoulder and smiled at her, the motion brief but bright as the setting sun. "Morning."

Encouraged by the warmth in his voice, Aqua nodded. "Morning. So, are you excited for what we're doing today?" She fell into step beside him, and he grunted ambiguously. "Come on, give me a clear answer," she teased.

Terra's shadow-blue eyes gleamed. "Provided it's not magic _combat_ training, I won't mind spending three hours to learn how to light a _candle_."

Aqua held one hand up to her mouth and turned away to hide her amusement, remembering the eldest disciple's horrid time with the most basic of elemental spells. That had been long ago, granted, but he still had a dislike for magic.

The grand stained glass room opened up before them, shedding early rays of sunshine down into the magnificent yellow enclosure. It was a stunning spot to be in at any time of the day, and Aqua knew the area so well that she could cartwheel through it blindfolded. The colored mosaics created tinted light that transformed anyone that stepped into it to a strange hue, and Ven was hopping from one radiant column to another, turning his skin a half dozen shades.

Vanitas had his shoulders hunched, purposely staying away from Ventus in case he got dragged into the young Keybearer's "game". His tawny eyes flashed towards Aqua's in way of greeting, then moved on once more.

Lightly grabbing Ven's shoulder as he passed, Aqua waved. "Good morning, Ven. Good morning, Vanitas," she added as cheerfully as she could, making a heroic effort to ignore the sudden rise in animosity now that Terra and the black-haired teen were in the same room.

"Good morning," Vanitas's reply was smooth as satin, obviously formulated just to antagonize Terra, since the words bore a mocking edge, and he was even _looking_ at the stoic warrior, though he was directing his phrase towards the female.

Terra growled deep in his throat, but to Aqua's bewilderment, he just blinked and smiled back pleasantly.

Ven sprang towards Aqua before she could examine anything else. "Master Eraqus says we're doing something interesting today, after breakfast!" His gaze taunted hers, as if he knew a secret about the "something interesting".

"_Why_ are we training _before_ breakfast?" Terra complained.

Vanitas's eyes rolled so fast that the yellow orbs became golden streaks. "No doubt it's something we'll enjoy oh so very much."

Ignoring him, Terra continued his little rant. "I don't mind practice, I don't mind lessons, I don't mind studying in the library, as long as I have—"

"Something to eat, I know," interrupted an amused voice from behind them. Everyone except Vanitas started in surprise, since the black apprentice was already facing Eraqus as he soundlessly appeared near his students. They scrambled to arrange themselves properly before him, standing stiff and at attention, focusing their various gazes on their teacher.

"Good morning, Master," they chimed in perfect unison, though their tones were different.

Eraqus inclined his head. "Now, Terra, I know you're hungry…"

"Me too," Ven muttered, earning another eye-roll from Vanitas.

"…but from now on, unless I say otherwise, at this time _every_ morning we will meditate before breakfast. Finding inner peace and strength is very important, amongst other things, and we_ should_ benefit from this…" He directed his stern stare towards Terra and Vanitas. "Finding peace is _especially_ important."

Waiting for some sort of challenge on the topic, Eraqus was silent for a few heartbeats. Aqua resisted the urge to shuffle her feet.

"Very well," their Master said at last, appearing contented. He sat down, crossing his legs and watching his pupils with calm eyes. After a moment of scuttling, the others were all seated around him in a loose semi-circle.

Aqua's entire being was focused on Eraqus's words now, as they always were during lessons.

"Copy my position," Eraqus instructed, settling into his commanding-teacher mode.

The friends hurriedly adjusted the angle of their torsos and pelvises, etc, with Ventus being the last to grow still. Their Master went straight on without studying them.

"If there is any part of your body that feels tense, relax them," he ordered softly.

Gradually, Aqua worked on easing her muscles, particularly the ones in her face and back.

"Focus on something that calms you," Eraqus began again after a minute or so had passed. The female Keybearer had lost track of time, which was odd, because usually she was just a good time-keeper…

Mentally shaking herself, Aqua let her mind drift until she settled on the forest outside of the Castle, which enshrouded the Land of Departure in their green foliage. She found herself also internally traveling the mountain trail again, where she had first truly spoken to Vanitas…

Eraqus's voice was strangely distant, when it came. "You'll all reach a point when you don't need to concentrate on anything. Then you shall have reached the pinnacle of meditation, and when that time comes, you will know. I will return for you when it is all right to stop."

Silence. Aqua assumed her Master had left, in a sort of detached way.

Her thoughts moved from side to side, not quite forming, but still there. They shifted and reacted to any image she conjured up, but with an extreme concentration of will, she managed to shove away anything that intruded on her inner peace.

Aqua knew she hadn't quite reached the "pinnacle of meditation" yet, but she thought it wasn't very far away.

Someone moved, and the quiet scrape of metal against stone shattered her rumination. Slightly annoyed, since the cloudy world of tranquility was inviting after the troubles she had endured from Vanitas and Terra, she opened one eye.

Terra's fingers were drumming restlessly against his leg, the scrape of his nails against his pants sounding loud in the silence. Aqua turned her attention towards Ven, shoulders slumped, and she wondered if he had fallen asleep. Vanitas was stock still, except for his chest, the black-and-red material of his suit rising and falling slowly with each breath he took.

Freezing guiltily, Aqua blinked sheepishly at Terra as he opened his eyes and stared at her. He gave her a small, crooked smile before clamping his lids shut and resuming his fidgeting. Reaching over, she lightly brushed the hand that was twitching in what she hoped was a comforting, reassuring manner.

His incessant tapping ceased.

Satisfied, Aqua fought to return to her meditation, and realizing what she was doing wrong, gave in and sank down into an obscure world where thoughts held no meaning or power.

~***~

"I'm tired," Ventus arched his back until the bones cracked, stretching his arms over his head. As if the action was too much work, he let his arms just fall back down, pressing his wild blonde hair flat.

Vanitas smirked. "Why would you be? Weren't you getting enough sleep?"

"Shut it, Van. At least I hadn't turned to stone," Ven teased good naturedly.

The friends were heading for the room they usually ate in for breakfast and other meals—an unnamed, neat chamber with a table and chairs. Eraqus had decided to make breakfast for them, but he reminded his students that he wouldn't _always_ do it.

That was all right, Aqua thought.

When they reached the room, they found that the window was open and a breeze drifted in, sending enticing scents towards them. The Master had a fondness for rice and beef, a meal he said his own teacher had created often, and thus Aqua wasn't surprised to find that very same dish waiting for them.

Without further ado, Terra snatched the chopsticks and picked up a bowl before he had even sat down, proceeding to stuff his face with the product. Everyone else plunked down unceremoniously near him. After a few bites had been taken, Aqua cleared her throat and said, "That was an interesting lesson. We're doing that every day?"

"That's what the Master said," Vanitas replied, since he was the only one that didn't have rice in his mouth.

That didn't stop Ven from speaking up and spraying rice all over the table. "Yeah! I—oops, sorry Van!"

The black apprentice wiped the white grain from the front of his shirt with a disgruntled expression, shooting the blonde a glare.

Terra snickered and put down his bowl. "Oh, lighten up, will you?"

Vanitas flicked a piece of meat at the earth-named warrior, and the sauce covered projectile promptly left a brown stain on its target's face as it careened over to the side of the table.

Slowly, and very theatrically, Terra wiped the mark off of his cheek. Aqua just barely generated a crystalline barrier in time to protect her and Ven from the resulting food fight between Vanitas and his adversary.

_The Master is going to kill them!_

Little happened in Eraqus's Castle without him knowing, unless he was just _very_ distracted. Now was not the case. He stormed in and snapped his fingers, barking a Gravity spell. Terra and Vanitas both gasped as they were floored, literally, as if a giant hand had squashed them down against the bronze tiles.

Ven's eyes were huge as Eraqus picked up two sets of toothpicks and handed one each to the warring protégés. "Every grain of rice, every bit of food, I want picked off of the floor using these. Understood?" His eyebrows drew together thunderously, looking like storm clouds over his dark blue eyes, accenting the scars on his face neatly.

Vanitas flinched and dipped his head, and Terra just averted his gaze, clenching his fists.

"This childish conflict _has_ to cease," Eraqus growled crossly. Rounding on Aqua and Ventus just as the former dropped her Reflect spell, he jerked one finger towards the exit. "We'll start magic practice without them, but rest assured they'll make up every minute they miss."

Following their Master as he departed, the duo darted out the door and scaled the stairs back to the Training Chamber. Eraqus turned on his heel abruptly once he reached the center, massaging his forehead and not really paying attention to his nervous pupils. At last:

"Ventus knows what we're doing today," Eraqus sighed. "It was _his_ idea, after all."

"I asked if we could combine spells," Ven explained in response to Aqua's quizzical look. "The Master said it was a little more difficult than saying one spell, but he thinks we can handle it."

Deigning not to say she had read and practiced this somewhere before—though she hadn't had any _formal_ education in it—Aqua nodded. Her stubborn thoughts kept dragging themselves towards Vanitas, Terra, and the blue rose tucked away in its elegant vase near her bedside. She had meant to bring it up at breakfast, but apparently the boys were intent on going crazy _again_.

_At least Ven isn't so…_argumentative.

Eraqus folded his arms behind his back and started his lesson. Aqua listened with honest interest to the fine mechanics of spell weaving, learning the different methods and how some used more energy than others.

The sun had shifted to about mid-noon, or Aqua guessed at least, and it was only at that time that Terra and Vanitas skulked back into the Chamber. They listened silently to Eraqus's instructions on twisting magic and combining it, and once he turned his attention to _everyone_ again, only then did they relax a bit.

Aqua thought Vanitas looked angry, golden eyes glinting harshly in the sun's light, and Terra just seemed irritable. Ven was still bright and happy, and she wished—as she shot a tongue of Fire into her Aero tornado—that they all had time to talk. But Eraqus appeared annoyed, and _no one_ wanted to be on his bad side more than they already were.

Their Master drilled them relentlessly, though not unkindly, helping every once in a while when a spell went out of control. He contained it easily, and Aqua swore he even used sunbeams once to form a shield when Terra's Thunder tornado—tornados were the subject for today—went out of control.

Vanitas was almost as good as she was at spell spinning, but Aqua was the one in the end that managed to successfully create a half dozen different type of tornados, sending them spinning around the room in perfect synchronization with one another, like rotating toy tops.

Eraqus was pleased with her, and his praise warmed Aqua from the tips of her ears down to her toes. But she modestly waved it off, not wanting it to go to her head, and as the sun dipped towards the horizon, their Master dismissed them.

They had only taken a break once for lunch, and Vanitas and Terra didn't even have the benefit of _that_. Aqua was exhausted, and no doubt everyone else was too. Ven had a better control over Aero than she did, Terra could expertly create a Magnet tornado—the enemies would go soaring towards the middle whilst the twister whirled around—faster than she could, and Vanitas's Ice tornados created a vicious typhoon of splintering icicles that were dangerous to everyone, and there even Aqua couldn't harness such a difficult to control element so well.

_So we all have strengths and weaknesses,_ she reasoned.

On the way down to dinner, Aqua decided to bring the rose up, if only to shatter the silence. "You know what I found this morning?"

"What?" Ven asked, the only one that wasn't sulking about Eraqus's impromptu punishment.

"I found the most beautiful blue rose in a vase today, right near my bed! Who put it there?" Aqua gazed at her companions one by one, as if their eyes held the answer.

Their steps sounded oddly loud in the semi-quiet of the spiraling staircase. Terra stirred and snapped out of his daydream. "Blue rose?"

"That's right."

"Seems you have a secret admirer. The question is, do you really want it to be a secret? Or would it be better, more interesting, this way?" Vanitas's tongue twisters were one of the only things that unsettled and even annoyed Aqua a little. He was falling into the habit of knotting his words and meanings more frequently now.

"I'd like to know." Inspiration hit her. "Was it _you_, Vanitas?"

Terra outright scowled, and Vanitas's eyes widened in genuine shock. Ven laughed.

"Giving flowers doesn't seem Van's style," the blonde Keybearer snickered into his hand.

Vanitas rolled his shoulders, turning away, black spines bobbing with every motion of his head.

"I agree with Ven," Terra remarked.

Aqua didn't bring the subject up again though, so Ven launched into a discussion over Eraqus's growing impatience for the antagonistic rivals. The girl couldn't help but wonder…

Who _had_ given her the flower? Was Vanitas's reaction a cover up? Or was it the truth? Had Terra or Ven given it to her instead?

It certainly wasn't Master Eraqus, so he was out. It was one of the three boys that she was walking between, the three boys she loved with all of her heart. Her dearest friends, silly as they were, in their own ways.

_With me being the blue-haired fool among them._

Even whilst she dined with her friends, the magical tingle of the scented blue rose never truly left her thoughts, not even when she went to bed late that evening.

The flower showed no sign of wilting.

~***~

**_Sorry that this chapter was kind of slow, it'll really pick up around Chapter Seven, I promise. These chapters will have varying lengths depending on what note I want to end on. This story will also have twenty chapters to it._**

**_Next Chapter: Key to the Kingdom_**

**_Review!_**


	5. Key to the Kingdom

**Chapter Four: Key to the Kingdom**

History lessons. Terra wasn't so sure what he felt about _that_, but he supposed it was a welcome change after the wearisome magic training from yesterday. He spent some time just gazing up at the ceiling, musing over a few things, a frown tugging at the corners of his lips.

At last he decided he had to get up, and he winced as the silence of the morning was invaded by the loud _thump-thump-thump_ of someone mercilessly…well, it sounded like someone was kicking the crud out of his door.

"What the…? What are you doing?" Terra called, standing and crossing the breadth of his messy room to open the door.

Vanitas was standing there, golden eyes shining behind their veil of spiky black bangs. "Aqua wants you to hurry up." A pause, and a nasty smirk spread across his pale face. "Nice boxers, by the way," he added with a laugh.

Terra fumed, slamming the door and stomping around as he searched for his training outfit. Snatching his should-guard from its position on his bedside table, he fastened it on as he tugged on his proper clothes.

A series of very unkind words swam through his mind, sharpened with indignant rage, all directed at the black apprentice.

At last he opened his door and shut it firmly behind him, muttering a spell that would magically seal its interior from intruders. It wasn't anything fancy, but it would do. Hopefully Vanitas didn't know the countercharm.

It was an overcast day, with the sun peeking out from beyond the thin white clouds. Moving shadows drifted lazily across the courtyard, and Terra thought today would have been a good time to do outdoor training…instead of being stuck in a stuffy library with a bunch of dusty old books.

Regardless, he took the steps two at a time, heading for the dining hall. The Castle was far too large for the small amount of inhabitants that called it home. That was because, once, there had been a lot more students living in the Land of Departure. Or so he was told.

He entered the well lit chamber, and he asked Ven as he passed the lounging blonde—whose feet were on the table—"Who's cooking?"

"Aqua is," he replied cheerily.

Terra paused, one hand on the high back of the dark oak chair that he usually occupied. "Where's Vanitas?"

"Van? He's helping Aqua bring the dishes out."

Before he could decide whether or not to help her, the female Keybearer walked out with her arms laden with dishes. She placed them down on the table, and Terra blinked in surprise. She was easily the best chef amongst them, and there were a lot of different foods from a lot of different worlds present. As the most well-read of the four disciples, Aqua's culinary tastes were a lot more varied.

"Good morning, Terra!" She greeted with a smile and a nod. "I'm trying out something new today, and the book said it was better for it to be consumed immediately after it was done cooking. Sorry to wake you a little earlier than usual."

Terra took a seat, pointedly ignoring Vanitas as he hovered behind Aqua. "No problem. Thanks."

"This looks _awesome_, Aqua!" Ven leaned forward and tried to grab a cinnamon bun, but Aqua lightly slapped his hand.

At his injured expression, she giggled a bit. "We have to wait for the Master, Ven. He'll be here any second."

Surveying the assorted dishes, Terra's eyebrows arched. There had to be at least ten different things to eat, and everything was cooked to perfection. "How long have you been _up_?"

The girl tapped her fingers against the table. "Not long. Just an hour."

"Not all of us sleep in," Vanitas idly remarked, his gaze openly mocking.

Aqua and Ven exchanged frustrated glances at the animosity that was crackling between the two Keybearers as shadow-blue eyes met burning yellow and found a challenge there.

Luckily the tension was broken as Master Eraqus swept in, cloak billowing. He stopped to study Aqua's handwork before congratulating the female apprentice for her excellent skills at food preparation. She blushed and waved it off as nothing.

Before they started eating, Eraqus commented casually, "I hope no one gets it into their heads to throw these pancakes around."

_They're never going to let that food fight incident go, are they?_

Losing himself in his own thoughts, the earth-named warrior started munching things absently without even looking to see what he was putting in his mouth. Therefore, he missed the following conversation:

"I've never seen someone put bacon and syrup together."

"Me either, Ven." Aqua whispered back, perplexed.

"It's not _that_ unusual, is it?" Vanitas, of course, said this with a shark-toothed grin.

"Leave Terra and his eating habits alone." Eraqus, regardless, was smiling a little.

Shaking himself free of his dark musings about his ever increasing rivalry with the black apprentice, Terra stared down at his hand with a flummoxed expression. "Why…is my hand sticky?"

"Syrup," Ven declared helpfully. "You actually dunked a bacon strip right in that cup!" He gestured to the dark brown, sweet concoction that was busily reassuming its perfectly still surface. It was actually meant to be used with the French toast sticks.

Grabbing a napkin, Terra grumbled, "Great."

Aqua attempted to smother a chuckle behind her hand.

~*X*~

The library in the Land of Departure was a huge, elegant place. Despite Terra's previous mental complaints about the situate, it was far from stuffy—though it _was_ a bit dusty. Spiraling staircases went up for three levels, with there being a gigantic stained glass window at the very top that dominated most of the wall. The floor was covered in forest-green carpet, and the shelves, chairs, and tables were fashioned from pale amber wood. The very oldest tomes were at the pinnacle of the facility, the most recently written ones were arranged in neat rows at the bottom.

Terra, Aqua, Ventus, and Vanitas were seated around a large circular desk with Master Eraqus at the head of the group. Ven's head was already starting to droop towards his chest thanks to the sleepy air of the library. The warmth certainly wasn't helping one bit.

Or Aqua's perfume. When did she start wearing _perfume_? The rosy scent made his nose tingle.

"Today, we will learn about the Keyblade Wars," Eraqus announced, his tone grave. Vanitas noticeably cringed, to Terra's curiosity.

Their mentor went on, placing his palms flat on the table. "Despite the wars having had happened only a few weeks ago, we still know little about it."

"Why's that, Master?" Ven asked.

"There were hundreds involved in the conflict, and no one dared to go to the world it originated on due to fear of being caught in the battle. The struggle was long, and brutal. It is believed that the combatants were fighting for the power of Kingdom Hearts. The Keybearers of Light, and the Keybearers of Darkness."

"Dark Keybearers?" Aqua's blue eyes settled on Vanitas as the boy gazed off to the right, appearing immeasurably bored.

"Those that have turned to the Darkness, and gather their strength from it." Eraqus frowned. "There were only a handful of survivors, at least that we know about. Vanitas is one of them. Master Xeni still lives, and plans to write a chronicle on the events. The others were two of her pupils, Flamma and Atrum. However, all that we know is that they are alive. Word about them hasn't been heard since."

"Did they run away?" Terra wondered.

The Keyblade Master shook his head slowly. "Of that, we are unsure. This is an important moment in Keyblade history, because, once all is said and done, upon the smoke's clearing…there have been a staggering amount of casualties. I kept you, my apprentices, away from the battle because I value your lives. I would never throw any of you into such a conflict." He closed his eyes and lowered his head. "I am not certain if we could have made a difference in the War if we _had_ gone, but ultimately I decided it was not worth the risk."

Vanitas abruptly gave a rough bark of laughter. "Their lives are important? I wish _my_ teacher had felt the same way. We were all for getting Kingdom Hearts' power to 'find the Darkness's inner Light'. Unfortunately, it seems I was expendable. But look who's still alive, Xehanort." A very nasty sneer formed on his young face, to everyone's shock.

"Vanitas, would you mind telling us what happened?" Eraqus inquired after a few seconds had passed. Terra, Aqua, and Ven looked at each other.

"Not fond memories. Death, death, and more death. Little battles at first with the others that had arrived. The place we call the Keyblade Graveyard? Used to be way greener. Then one huge mêlée later, everyone's dead!" Something dangerously close to insanity glinted in his golden eyes. "I remember, during the biggest brawl, I had climbed onto a cliff ledge. Spells were flying everywhere and I saw a girl I had met earlier have her head chopped off by a big brute—from the _Light side_."

Aqua put her hand on his arm, trembling, and Terra felt himself go numb as his imagination painted the scene for him in his head.

And just like that, he was privy to one of his very rare visions. This time, he could tell from the faded colors that it was from the past.

_Dust howled around him as storm clouds swirled overhead. Sparks flew from the Keyblades of dozens as they hurled themselves against one another, bleeding, their eyes wide with fright and exhilaration. Every time someone collapsed in the dirt—the youngest were always the first to go—another took their place. _

_And easily the most noticeable…was a young woman whose red hair was the same color as the blood on her Keyblade._

Reality snapped back into place and Terra shivered from the strength of the visualization. He found it strange, to see the past when usually his mind only showed him things from the future.

Ven turned pale. "H-Hey Van, you're scaring Aqua."

Vanitas's wild glare transformed into a tired frown as he slumped backwards into his seat. "I don't want to talk about it," he snapped before Eraqus could say anything.

The Keyblade Master watched them for a few seconds more, then he picked a book off the shelf and said, "Let's move on to something…brighter. Does anyone know anything about the power of True Love's Kiss?"

~*X*~

By early evening, they were dismissed from studying as Eraqus went off to his personal chambers without telling anyone exactly _why_. Without much else to do, the Keybladers went to the lawn of the Castle and lounged there in the grass.

The clouds passed by overhead, and Terra fancied that, somewhere, beautiful violin music was playing. It was _that_ breathtaking. The emerald grass tickled his bare skin and a cool breeze blew from the north, bringing with it the scent of rain. Vanitas wasn't lying on his back, but rather he was on his stomach, staring down at the ground.

"That cloud looks like a sea lion!" Ven exclaimed unexpectedly, pointing upwards at a fluffy cloud that did indeed greatly resemble the aquatic mammal.

"Heh, guess it does." He shrugged.

Aqua hummed in agreement whilst Vanitas just snorted.

"Does the Master…seem troubled, to you?" The female asked tentatively, fingers curling in on themselves. Terra nodded thoughtfully.

"This _can't_ be just because you guys fight all the time," protested Ven, sitting up and moving his sky-blue gaze from Terra to Vanitas.

"Might be," the black apprentice scoffed. "I wonder at the credibility of a Master that has such short patience."

"Take that back! Master Eraqus is a great teacher!" Terra snarled, clenching his fist. Vanitas smiled with faux innocence.

"I wasn't talking about Eraqus."

"C'mon, guys…" Ven raised his hands. "No fighting."

Aqua surprised all three of them by rising slowly to her feet and narrowing her eyes to azure slits. "If you two start again, I'm going to put a Time Stop spell on you."

"You couldn't have learned that." Vanitas blinked incredulously. "That's Master Level magic."

"Try me."

Terra didn't like his chances with Aqua and _magic_. Odds were, if the spell existed, she could and would learn how to use it within a few minutes. He sat back down with a heavy scowl.

Aqua and Vanitas just continued their standoff. It got to the point where Terra hoped that the latter _would_ call the girl's bluff.

"Very well," the dark-haired boy conceded, reclaiming his former position on the grass.

Looking a little smug, Aqua settled next to Ven and pulled out her star charm. She dangled it in front of her, and the fading rays of sunlight danced off of its glassy cerulean surface. Terra did the same, as did Ven and Vanitas, and the grass was painted blue, red, green, and yellow beneath them, forming star-shaped patterns against the earth.

"No matter what happens," Aqua said softly. "No matter how many times we fight…" A meaningful look at Terra and Vanitas. "You guys are my friends. Nothing will ever tear us apart!"

"One for all and all for one, right?" Ven clapped his hand onto the scowling Vanitas's shoulder. "That includes you!"

Terra felt his throat constrict as his gaze rested on Aqua, and he wished desperately that he could get the words past the barrier that existed only in his mind. "When we make Master," he said in lieu of nothing at all. "What do you guys want to do?"

"I want to go to Olympus! The Games they hold there sound _fun_!" Ventus declared. "I want my name on the plaque of records of whatever that thing is called. The big scoreboard that's in the books."

"I want to visit the world where I got the idea for our lucky charms from," Aqua murmured.

Vanitas thought about it, and Terra thought he seemed genuinely puzzled. "Ah…I'll figure it out when I make Master," he remarked dismissively.

Terra leaned back on his hands. "All the worlds that are out there…I want to see them. All of them."

"That's what we'll do!" Ven practically shouted. "Together, we'll go on a world tour sort of thing! What do you say, guys?" At his expectant grin, Aqua and Terra couldn't help but agree.

"Come on," the female Keybearer coaxed the passive Vanitas. "It wouldn't be the same without you."

Terra begged to differ, but he stayed silent out of respect for Aqua and her dreaded Time Stop enchantment.

"Fine," Vanitas grumbled, though he was smiling with a little less maliciousness than normal. "I don't have anything better to do."

Ventus's celebrations were cut short as a voice called, "Aqua!"

She sat up so fast that Terra heard some of her joints crack. Wincing, she turned to Master Eraqus. "Yes, Master?"

Terra thought he looked awfully stern.

"Am I in trouble?" She queried unhappily as Ven and Vanitas looked on inquisitively.

Master Eraqus said nothing, just walked back inside. Aqua flashed her friends an apologetic smile before hurrying after him, climbing the steps and vanishing within the Castle.

"I wonder what's up?" Ven scratched his head.

"That's what _I'd_ like to know," Terra complained with a deep sigh.

* * *

_Author's Note: Very super special thanks to UnVeRsEd for helping me write this chapter! You are awesome, my friend. A real life saver. Anyway, I in no way claim to own Atrum, Flamma, or Master Xeni. They're from UnVeRsEd's story about the Keyblade Wars, which I highly recommend checking out. _

_Keep in mind that Impossible As It Seems is AU, hence the War having had taken place recently. Yes, for those that don't know, Terra has some sort of foresight ability. My apologies to everyone for the horribly late update, but I'm writing the next chapter...right now!_

_Reviews motivate me to write faster! XD_


	6. A Heart As Dark As Night

**Chapter Five: A Heart as Dark as Night**

Aqua followed after her mentor, feeling a bit uneasy about his silence. The setting sun coated the walls of the Castle with a deep red light that made her skin crawl a little, though she wasn't sure why. The metal heels of her armored shoes clanked against the stone tiles, and she hunched her shoulders as she tried to figure out what she could have done to earn his ire.

Master Eraqus opened a door into an obscure room that she had only been in once, when she had been playing a game of Hide and Seek with Ven. There was a small circular window at the very top right of the chamber, otherwise it was devoid of anything except for dust and a few forlorn chairs with dull red cushions. He paused in the center and said, "Close the door."

She did so, standing at attention as she tried to get her heart to stop pounding.

"Aqua."

"Yes, Master?"

"Relax. You're not in trouble." The corners of Eraqus's mouth turned down in a frown. "I'm worried about Vanitas."

"He's doing much better," Aqua assured him, her tone soothing. "I think he really likes to be with Ven and me."

"But what about Terra?"

"I don't know. You see how they are." She directed her gaze to a shadowy corner of the room, inhaling deeply before exhaling the same way, the only thing revealing her annoyance with the two males.

His arms crossed. "Aqua. You saw what happened during the battle training I gave you four."

Her fingers on her right hand twitched in response to that. She still remembered what had happened…Vanitas had gone out of control and had stabbed her with his Keyblade. "I'm fine now, Master."

"I've never had an experience like that, not anything that _dangerous_, when I was training you three."

"Vanitas is different from us," Aqua said quietly. "He can't help it."

"You're right, he is different. And if he can't help it, I might not be able to teach him. I will not tolerate injuries born from that boy, nor will I tolerate his Darkness." Eraqus's face became cold.

She jumped to the defense of her friend. "But Master, he's trying to learn! He really is! Just give him a chance."

"This boy has had plenty of chances. But for your sake, I will give him one more. But if anything should happen…should he harm someone else, or should his Darkness prove too much for him, I want you to come and get me. Do you understand?"

Aqua's fingers folded into a fist, which she placed over her heart. "He's not as bad as you think."

"His heart is black," Eraqus's prejudice against the shadows would not be placated, it seemed. "Like the night."

She met her teacher's eyes and said coolly, "The night is always lit with stars, Master."

Surprise flitted through his gaze before he smiled at her. "That it is, Aqua."

After that he just gestured for her to leave, and the female Keybearer did so, making her way back through the passages of the Castle and down the steps.

"What did the Master want?" Ven asked her the instant she rejoined her companions in the courtyard. By this point, the sun was nearly gone as a soft lavender descended. Evening was one of her favorite times of day, because sometimes the sun and moon could be seen at the same time as red merged with blue.

It was proof that Light and Darkness could coexist, even if only for a moment.

_Should I tell Vanitas? Or lie?_

Turns out, she didn't need to. "It was about me, wasn't it?" The black apprentice commented icily.

Her guilty silence was all that he needed.

"Figures." Vanitas fell onto his back with a scowl.

"Van? The Master's worried about Van?" guessed Ven.

"More like wary," scoffed Terra.

Aqua shook her head. "Let's go inside, guys. I'll make something to eat."

~*X*~

It was a pitch black kind of night, the kind where the clouds have come and covered even the moon. The wind whistled beyond the glass of her window as Aqua read by firelight in her room. She turned the pages slowly, cautious of tearing the fragile paper, her gaze inevitably drawn to the blue rose on her bedside table.

_I still don't know who gave that to me,_ she thought. _Is there a spell that could help?_

She shrugged, dismissing the concept for now. The mystery was half the fun, after all. She traced the lines of text on the fairy tale book she was reading, the sepia-toned picture on the left side of the manuscript having had captured her attention already due to the sheer amount of _detail_ that it contained.

Aqua was reading an ancient legend—not from the Land of Departure, but somewhere else—about a priestess and her friends going on a journey to regenerate the world. The priestess was going to become an angel to save everyone from their imminent demise, but in the process she was slowly losing her humanity. First her appetite, then her ability to sleep, then her sense of touch. The very last thing to go was her voice. This made her childhood friend understandably miserable, but for some reason he was under the impression that this was his fault for not shouldering more of her pain.

Obviously, it was a gripping story and that was why she didn't notice the moving shadow until it clawed at her shoulder.

She screamed in agony, clapping her hand onto the wound and grimacing as she felt the warm, sticky presence of blood. She stumbled to her feet, whipping around and placing her back to the door of her room. Three shapes were emerging from the very floor itself, slithering to a stop beside the tall, dark form with burning yellow eyes that was watching her with an inhuman intelligence. Its claws were red.

Summoning her Keyblade, she kicked her door open and swiftly stepped out into the hallway as the monstrosities followed. She swung _Rain Fall_ and caught one of the shadows in the chest. It was a little one, and it hit the ground hard, laying there, dazed.

The tallest figure dipped into the floor in a cloud of oily Darkness, attempting to get the jump on her from behind. She threw a shield up and fired a Blizzard spell at it, but it seemed mostly unaffected by the ice clinging to its veined skin.

Footsteps raced towards her. "Aqua!"

It was Ven, who had the room closest to hers.

"Stay back!" She warned him, swiping her Keyblade in a sideways arc and slicing the two little shadows in half. Now there was only the tall one, and it moved forward fearlessly, long antennae waving.

Ven, as was his wont, ignored her. "Take this!" Making use of his uncanny fighting style—it involved the reversed grip on his Keyblade, _Fresh Breeze_—he dealt a triple combination attack on the monster until it imploded in on itself, disappearing into thin air as a cloudy formation of black crescents.

"What _were_ those things?" The boy asked, turning to her.

"I don't know. We need to find Terra and Vanitas. Come on!" Aqua took Ven's hand and sped down the hallways with him, practically leaping down the stairs as rain began to fall in silver rivulets outside. A cacophony of sounds reached their ears, and they found Vanitas mercilessly slaughtering a small group of five little shadow-creatures.

He didn't need any help, and after wiping out the last one, he faced them. "Aqua, are you okay?"

She stared blankly at the blood running down her shoulder before casting a quick Cure spell that also cleaned and repaired her clothes. "I'm fine."

"Let's get Terra!" Ven pounded off with the others close behind. Terra was found shortly, bashing _Earth Shaker_ against a tall dark monster. Fortunately, he obliterated it without too much trouble.

The spooked apprentices immediately launched into a conversation regarding what had just happened before they were all forced to close their eyes at the same time. The reason for this was because of a huge wave of Light that swept across the entire Castle, doubtlessly cleansing it of any more shadow monsters.

Eraqus didn't have to go looking for his students, because they all came hurtling into the Training Room with various exclamations of shock.

"I was just reading, and then—"

"Can't even sleep around here without—

"I was practicing my magic—"

"Enough," their teacher interrupted, raising a hand. "Are all of you all right?"

They nodded, shifting from foot to foot with obvious uneasiness.

"Those creatures that came just now, they are called the Heartless. They're hunters of Darkness that try to steal people's hearts. They've never come to the Land of Departure before, but I suspect that a heart full of Darkness may have called them here."

Vanitas suddenly growled, enraged, "What? Are you blaming this on me?"

"Um…Van? He never said that," Ven put in nervously.

"_He was implying it_! Before you point fingers—"

"Calm yourself, Vanitas. I don't blame you for this. This is my fault, regarding the seal I placed on the Castle long ago." Eraqus sighed and nodded at the exit. "All of you may leave. Try to get some sleep, if you can. It should be safe now."

A chorus of, "Yes, Master," filled the air before the foursome made their way back to their rooms. Instead of splitting up, they opted to stay together and sat outside Aqua's door. The girl went back into her room to get her book, frowning in annoyance upon seeing its cover had been shredded. Luckily, the pages were intact.

She sat between Terra and Vanitas—(so they wouldn't argue)—flipping through the tome as Ven struck up a discussion.

"The Heartless? Have any of you guys ever heard about them before?"

"Kind of." Vanitas shrugged. "My old Master claimed that they were capable of being controlled, under the right circumstances." The last part sounded rather cryptic.

"Why would you want _those_ things as pets?" Terra sounded skeptical, to Aqua's amusement.

"Maybe so they won't hurt anyone?" She guessed absently.

"I'm not a fan of evil minions," quipped Ventus sarcastically.

Vanitas smirked. "They have other uses."

"And you know this because…?" Terra wondered sardonically.

The black-haired boy's only response was a knowing smile.

The conversation went on for a bit longer until Aqua unexpectedly dropped her book in surprise. She stood up and went into her room to check on the blue rose, relieved to find it still perfectly fine. She touched the tips of her fingers to its velvety surface, a smile finding its way onto her face.

Ven was leaning in the doorway, probably to avoid Vanitas's and Terra's brewing argument outside. "It's okay, right?"

"Yeah. I'm glad." A thought occurred to her, and she said out of the blue, "Did you give this to me, Ven?"

He replied with honest shock. "_Me_?"

She studied him some more, but his face showed only astonishment. "Guess not." Shrugging, she brushed past him and got to work prying apart an angry Vanitas and Terra before the duo killed themselves. It was simple, really. If she or Ven wasn't there, they were going to murder each other, from the looks of it.

The rain continued to howl and crash outside like a harbinger of death, but Aqua believed that the sun would show itself again come morning.

* * *

_Author's Note: If anyone can guess the name of the game Aqua's book was based on, you win...something. I don't know. Cookies? The chapters will start lengthening again later. _

_Next Chapter: More Alike Than You Know_

_Review, if you want._


	7. More Alike Than You Know

**Chapter Six: More Alike Than You Know**

Terra yawned, turning over in bed and burying his face back into his pillow. He had no problem actually _doing_ Keyblade training or anything else, but if only they didn't have to start so early in the morning…would it kill them to start an hour or two later? Maybe when the sun was actually above the horizon?

And then—

A splash of icy cold water hit the brown-haired warrior in the face, and he yelped, jumping out of bed and spluttering. Pushing wet bangs out of his eyes, he spotted Vanitas beside his bed, grinning hugely with a bucket in one hand.

"Rise and shine," said Vanitas cheerily. His golden eyes flared. "The Master has _such_ an important lesson planned for us today; he wants to get started early so we can finish early as well."

Terra tried to formulate a scathing response, but his teeth were too busy chattering. He glared furiously at his adversary with a look of pure loathing. "Y-Y-Y-You s-s-s-son of a—"

"Watch your language, there are children present!" Vanitas scolded with a wicked grin just as Ven appeared in the doorway.

"Hey, Terra—whoa, did you lose a bet with Van or something?"

"G-G-G-G—" Terra started, but Vanitas interrupted.

"G-G-Grovel?" mocked the black-haired apprentice.

"G-G-Girl?" Ven chimed whilst batting his eyelashes, catching on, though he meant the teasing in only harmless fun.

"_Get out_!" screamed Terra in a fine fury, his Keyblade leaping to his hand in a vibrant flash.

Vanitas pulled himself down in a low bow as he left, and Ven merely snickered before departing, though the glance he gave Terra over his shoulder was sympathetic.

_That's it, I'm going to kill him,_ Terra thought darkly as he dug through his drawers for a change of clothes. _Or at the very least get him back for this._

Once he was dressed properly, he stalked down the stairs and entered the breakfast hall with such an angry look that storm clouds could quite possibly begin to form over his head. Terra pointedly ignored Vanitas and sat next to Aqua with a miserable sigh.

"What's wrong with you?" Aqua asked, concerned. She knitted her brows together in that way she always did when she was worried.

"Nothing. Just thinking about the best way to get rid of a problem."

She sighed, following his wrathful gaze towards Vanitas, who was innocently chatting with Ven as the latter slathered whipped cream on a pancake.

Following breakfast, they went off to the training hall. The stained glass windows were glowing beautifully as the sun hit them at just the right angle, and the multicolored light bounced all around the gold and white chamber.

Master Eraqus, strangely, wasn't present just yet. He hadn't even been there for their usual mediation before breakfast, which had eventually devolved to the point that all of the boys were likely more asleep than actually "reaching their point of solace". Aqua, being the goody-two shoes they all knew and loved, was the only one actually _trying_ to obtain inner peace at this point.

"Do you think the Master overslept?" Ven hazarded a guess for their current plight.

"_Overslept_?" Terra's incredulous tone alone answered that question.

Aqua frowned, crossing her arms. Vanitas paced around like a lion in a cage, the tap of his boots against the tiles was beginning to drive the brown-haired warrior insane.

Thankfully, Eraqus entered the room from some side passage. In his arms he had several blue bottles that Terra identified as Ethers, and he realized with a sinking feeling that they were doing something with magic today.

Great…

"Today's lesson is immensely important, so I ask for each and every one of you to give me your undivided attention." Eraqus paused before the line of disciples, his dark blue eyes grave. "Today I will try and teach you the finer mechanics of healing, past the bare minimum that you know." He delicately placed down the Ethers at his feet. Straightening, he asked abruptly, "What is the most important thing to remember when attempting healing magic?"

Everyone hesitated, and to Terra's shock it was Ven that answered first, not Aqua. "Um…don't freak out over the injury?"

The Master nodded. "Exactly. Healers are not of much help if they can't think straight. Anything else that a healer should know?"

"Some wounds can't be treated with just a simple Cure?" Aqua suggested tentatively.

"Correct. If, say, Ven had been poisoned by something…what would you use to heal that? Vanitas?" Eraqus turned towards the dark apprentice now.

Vanitas looked like someone had just knocked him out of a daydream. "…Esuna."

"Indeed. Does anyone here know Esuna?"

"I do," Aqua said.

Terra suddenly felt sort of left out, so he decided to try something himself. "But, Master, what if you have a broken bone? What spell would work for that?"

"Broken bones aren't something a Cure can repair. Perhaps a Curaga, but not a Cure." Eraqus cleared his throat and went off into a long lecture regarding Cure, Cura, Curaga, Esuna, and every other type of healing spell. Apparently Light-aligned Keybearers could even call on the Light to heal things, but the Darkness had little to no capacity when it came to healing without the user completely giving himself to the shadows. "And if you do that," Eraqus remarked quietly. "Then it's already too late."

Vanitas rolled his eyes.

And then the Master did something truly shocking. He drew back his arm and summoned his Keyblade. Placing the metal teeth of the Keyblade against the back of his other hand, he drew back sharply and caused every single one of the apprentices to jump in fright as they saw their Master start to bleed.

"M-M-Master!" Aqua stammered.

"Anyone here want to try and heal me?" Eraqus said pleasantly, as if he wasn't injured—though admittedly, it was a wound that was far from serious. "How about you, Terra?"

Nervously, the aforementioned boy moved forward. He spread his fingers over the wound as he had been shown and closed his eyes. In battle, flesh wounds could easily be mended with Cure, but deeper healing spells required more concentration. "Cure." He sighed in relief as he opened his eyes and saw the green energy had faded, and the minor cut had disappeared.

"Good work. I'm sorry to have startled you, it's part of the lesson, you see." Eraqus's praise made Terra feel, well, pretty awesome. He stepped back with a bow, but the moment was ruined by Vanitas.

"Is that where all of those scars on your face came from? Past healing lessons?" he inquired cheekily.

Eraqus pinched the bridge of his nose and heaved a deep sigh, eyes shut tight, as if seeking divine aid.

They continued the healing lessons for another hour, though thankfully Eraqus didn't chop himself up anymore. Once class was dismissed—and a thoughtful Master Eraqus retreated to his personal quarters—the foursome were left to do whatever it was that they wanted.

"So, what now?" Ven asked, folding his arms behind his head and following at the back of their group as Terra led them out to the court yard.

"I don't know…we used to play games when we were younger, but I don't think we can play tag anymore," Aqua said wryly.

Terra inexplicably found himself thinking of his vision in the library, of the red-haired girl that had been watching the Keyblade Wars unfold with frightening eyes. But why it was frightening, he wasn't sure. Maybe the intensity…?

"I want to have a word with Terra alone."

Everyone stopped and stared at Vanitas, who blinked impassively back.

"_Why_?" demanded a suspicious Terra, fists clenched at his sides. "So you can pull some stupid childish prank again?"

"Not at all," the cryptic boy replied.

Aqua and Ven exchanged unsure looks from eyes that were similar shades of astonished blue.

"Go on ahead guys, we'll catch up." Terra folded his arms against his chest and following a few moments of hesitation, the other two members of their posse pushed open the heavy double doors and went outside. The bright golden sun made his eyes smart momentarily, and he had to move his gaze elsewhere.

Vanitas was silent.

"Well?" Terra growled, meeting the alien yellow eyes of his rival. "What do you want?"

"We're more alike than you know," Vanitas remarked quietly.

The hair on the back of his neck stood up. "What're you talking about?"

He walked toward him until they stood less than a foot apart. "Your Master, he hates the Darkness, doesn't he? Down with the Darkness, Darkness is evil, Darkness is destructive…do your friends hate it too? Will they accept you when you're just as bad as I am? Maybe worse? Because denying the Darkness is worse than accepting it…_that_ lets it take over…"

Terra couldn't help it—he took a step back. "You're lying. How would you know?"

Vanitas's golden eyes flashed. "Darkness users can sense the Darkness. One of the many perks it has over the light. So tell me…do you ever feel the Darkness? Can you _sense_ it? The power…"

Terra shook his head, appalled. "You're trying to psyche me out. It's not going to work."

He cocked his head to the side. "If you say so. That was my fair warning to you, though. Denying the Darkness is more dangerous than accepting it…because then it leaks through your armor, finds cracks in your mind, makes you weak. And then…" He clenched his fist, and Terra watched as shadows gathered around his tightly curled fingers.

"And then_ what_?" He challenged, trying to sound tougher than he felt at the moment.

Vanitas smiled coyly. "And then you die."

~*X*~

A lot of things about Aqua had come to Ven's attention lately, but he made it his priority to help his poor friend out when he noticed that her expression was becoming a bit too serious. It meant she was probably thinking of Terra, her childhood friend, and Vanitas, the boy she _wanted_ to be her friend.

The solution to that was simple—he had to make her smile. Bonus points if she laughed and rubbed his hair while she did so, like she typically did.

Right now, with the blue sky above them and the warm sun baking the courtyard's grass, Aqua was lying on her stomach with her eyes remarkably distant. She could have been staring into space for all he knew, but wait…did the sky count as space…?

Ven picked some grass and sprinkled it on top of her cerulean hair to see if she noticed. So far, she wasn't even twitching, nor was she reacting in any way. Next, he gathered some white wildflowers and laid them delicately on top of the grass, until it looked like she had a miniature flowerbed on top of her head.

Still, no reaction.

Honestly and truly flummoxed now, the blonde boy did the only thing he could think of. He lit a little fire between his fingers and made a huge show of inching _slowly ever so slowly_ closer to one of the plant stems sticking out of her hair at a haphazard angle.

"Ven! What are you doing?" Aqua yelped, springing back with an easy handspring to get out of his range. Ven dismissed the harmless little ember and studied her with honest confusion.

"Jeesh Aqua, I was wondering when you'd notice." He grinned and helped her knock the foliage out of her azure tresses, and she ruffled his hair with an exasperated sigh.

"There are better ways to get people's attention Ven," chided the female Keybearer as she sat back down beside him.

"Heh, sorry. You look sort of troubled, though."

Aqua shook her head. "It's just about Terra and Vanitas. Don't worry, I'll—"

Just then, Vanitas and Terra both came out of the Castle and headed towards the pair already sitting on the grass. Aqua quickly shut her mouth and swiftly began to hum a song that Ven was unfamiliar with, but the melody was light and easygoing.

Taking it upon himself to ask "the question" Ven announced with a bit of sarcasm in his tone, "So, are you going to tell us what you guys were talking about?"

"Of course," Vanitas replied smoothly. "We were discussing the merits of—"

Terra interrupted him. "Aqua, are you all right?"

"Huh? I'm fine, why do you ask?"

"It's…nothing. I think we _should_ do something we used to do when we were younger." The brown-haired warrior decided. "How about…Truth or Dare?"

Aqua noticeably perked up at that. "Truth or Dare…who wants to go first?"

Ven shrugged. "I will, I guess."

Vanitas grinned nastily. "Alright, Ventus. Truth or Dare?"

Fearing for his well-being if he took "Dare" from _Van_ of all people, he hastily chose, "Truth."

"You're no fun, are you?" Vanitas grouched. "Fine. Tell me, have you ever had dark thoughts concerning our _wonderful_ little group?"

"Dark thoughts?" Ven shook his head. "Nope, only bright thoughts." He smiled in a way that made it difficult to not believe him.

"Because you're a freakishly happy little child, aren't you?"

"Vanitas," Aqua reprimanded sharply.

"Okay, okay. What, am I next then?"

Ven didn't miss how Terra pounced on the opportunity. "Truth or Dare?"

"Truth." Vanitas clearly picked that just to annoy Terra, and it seemed to have worked marvelously.

Aqua laughed softly as her brown-haired friend scowled. "Well," he said slowly. "What happened during the Keyblade Wars?"

Vanitas's cheeky smirk disappeared. To Ven's astonishment, his gold eyes flickered with something close to horror. "What happened? People died. Next."

Aqua appeared pretty concerned about the way he phrased it. "Vanitas…?"

"_Next_." His shoulders hunched, making it clear he was through.

"Way to ruin the game Terra," Ven said teasingly, and Terra's jaw dropped.

"_What_? Me?"

Aqua unexpectedly looked toward the Castle, and Ven turned to see why. Master Eraqus was striding towards them, and he seemed pretty pleased about something.

The apprentices' playful bickering stopped and even Vanitas lifted his head to see what the sudden silence was about.

Master Eraqus's blue eyes twinkled. "How would the four of you like to go see another world? There's somewhere I need to go, and I think it's safe enough to take you there."

* * *

_Author's Note: I'm tired of getting PMs that pretty much go "zomg why haven't you updated?" So here's an update. XD Sorry I have both sorta/kinda Writer's Block on this, and my friend hasn't updated her Keyblade Wars fic recently! Makes me sad since they're sorta connected...anyway, cookies to those who guessed that the book Aqua was reading was "Tales of Symphonia". You guys rule. Review, if you want._

_Update's in honor of Dani-Chan-go read her story White Knight! NOW. It's better than this piece of crap..._


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